THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, June 8, 1994 TAG: 9406070142
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MONTAGUE GAMMON, CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE: 940608 LENGTH: Medium
When there are only four people in a play, as in ``Veronica's Room'' at the Little Theatre of Virginia Beach, it's conceivable that all four could have an off day, or an off night, at the same time.
{REST} After all, these volunteers have worked hard for the many weeks of rehearsal and performance.
They've worked hard to learn all those lines. They've worked hard to learn when and where to move and when to stand rigidly. They've worked hard to learn when to wave their arms and flap their hands in the air and when to hold them stiffly away from their sides, in the pose of a nervous gunfighter.
One can understand how their energy might flag by the second week of performances.
Unfortunately, a thriller without energy or intensity doesn't offer many thrills. When the script is a well-crafted as is ``Veronica's Room,'' it's a shame to have the performance becalmed in the dramatic doldrums.
It would also be a shame to give away much of Ira Levin's convoluted, clever plot, thereby spoiling the surprises for those who will see it.
The year is 1973. The place is a room in an old house ``a half an hour's drive from Boston.'' The room has remained unchanged, except for covering the furniture and cleaning, since 1935.
There is a less-than-clever young woman given to saying ``Oh, wow!'' a lot, who is supposed to resemble the long-dead Veronica. There is a young man she has just met, and there is an older couple, now residents of Veronica's family home.
There is an intricate, planned series of surprises and shifts that seems to question the nature of reality and illusion, of memory and fabrication, of sanity and insanity. Only after the show's succession of shocks has played out does one realize how subtly and carefully Levin had planted clues to what lay beneath the startling revelations.
Done crisply, the play could send audiences into the night uneasily looking over their shoulders. Done crisply, the play could pull a gasp from the audience of each new twist.
As it stood last Saturday, those watching the play had to provide the suspense for themselves, as if reading a story rather than seeing one enacted.
There needs to be a build of tension, followed by a release, with each twist of the plot. Pacing and energy need to rise and fall, not remain at one level throughout. Anticipation should grow until it is almost unbearable, before each new jolt hits home.
Cast members Jim Luker, Sherry Forbes and David Mitchell have all done better work in other productions. Barbara Kelly is new to the area, but ``Veronica's Room'' reveals enough about her abilities to suggest most strongly that she is not at the top of her form.
The set, designed by Mike Bromley, and the costumes, by Jorja Jean, were effective and attractive. Ann Heywood directed.
Of course, if the actors were just having a slow night, they should be improved for the final weekend of performances.
by CNB